A cultural center for the Chilkoot Indian Association is in the early stages of development.
This winter, CIA was selected as one of nine communities out of a pool of 40 applicants to participate in “Culture Builds Community: Facilitating the Planning and Construction of Native Museums.” Administered by the Association of Tribal Archives, Libraries and Museums, the program provides training and resources including access to a team of grant writers, planners and architects to help communities create a roadmap for designing and building a cultural center.
The program is having participants work through questions including what the role and function of the cultural center will be, how it fits into community values and where it will be located during weekly Zoom trainings, CIA tribal administrator Harriet Brouillette said. Once those questions are answered, participants will begin meeting with architects.
CIA has had discussions in the past about starting a cultural center but has never before taken steps to work toward a long-term plan, Brouillette said. It was her idea to apply for the program. In 2013, the Chilkoot Indian Association received a library grant through the same organization.
Brouillette said her son, Chilkoot Indian Association employee Ted Hart, was one of the people who “pushed me the hardest about getting this done.”
Hart said he was motivated, in part, by an event he attended at Sitka’s tribal house.
“It was a really good homecooked meal and a movie. It was really nice seeing everyone getting together and sharing some laughs,” Hart said. He said he could see the cultural center offering the same type of gathering space in Haines.
“It’ll be a positive place for our youth to get together and also learn about our culture. There are huge benefits when the tribal youth learn about their culture. It does wonders for their self-esteem,” Hart said. He said the center will also allow for the “sharing of our beautiful culture with nontribal members” and visitors passing through town.
Another motivation behind the cultural center is having a secure place to store cultural artifacts.
“Right now, we don’t have a place to store clan objects,” Brouillette said. “They are graciously stored at the Sheldon Museum, but with the (Haines Borough Assembly) talking about cutting funding for the museum, it’s been eye-opening.”
Interest in a cultural center predates recent discussions about closing the museum, but Brouillette said there has long been a sense that the museum is a target for potential budget cuts.
Brouillette recently resigned from the board of the Haines Sheldon Museum. She said she doesn’t think the cultural center will be in competition with the museum. “The idea isn’t to put them out of business by any means.”
In addition to serving as an archive, the center could offer other services. Hart said it would be nice to see the center incorporate use of Tlingit language and art.
“I think art is really beneficial. I think a lot of the time people are pretty surprised by what they’re capable of when they really focus,” Hart said. A small gift shop would be nice as well, he added.
Part of the planning phase will involve polling community members to get a sense of what they want from the center. Brouillette said she is waiting for the pandemic to die down so people can be brought together for discussions.
Other aspects of the Culture Builds Community program have been delayed or altered due to COVID-19. After initial discussions about postponing the start of the program, participants elected to move forward with planning sessions and trainings via Zoom. Normally, the program would involve visits to the National Museum of the American Indian in Washington D.C. and other cultural centers around the country. The D.C. visit would allow participants to learn more about clan artifacts in the Smithsonian’s collection that are available for repatriation. The trips could still happen at a later date.
Brouillette said the Association of Tribal Archives, Libraries and Museums suggests participants develop a five-year plan for building the cultural center, but that may not be a realistic timeline for CIA, especially given the current pandemic. The Culture Builds Community program funds the initial planning phase, but CIA will be responsible for securing funding for construction.
Brouillette said CIA will have more details about the cultural center once training finishes in December.